PD: Man killed by officer had laser-equipped handgun

PHOENIX (CBS5) -

A Phoenix police officer shot and killed a man holding a laser-equipped handgun during a domestic violence call at a downtown Phoenix condominium Sunday evening.

No officers were injured when police were called after 46-year-old William Shaw and his wife were involved in a dispute at the Renaissance Park Condominiums near Seventh and Washington streets just after 6:30 p.m., said Sgt. Tommy Thompson of the Phoenix Police Department.

The 41-year-old woman answered the door, and as officers stepped into the condo, the husband ordered them to leave, Thompson said.

Thompson said William Shaw was holding a handgun equipped with a laser and pointed it at the officers, who retreated to find cover.

William Shaw moved toward the doorway and pointed the handgun at one of the officers, who then exchanged gunfire with the man before he was struck and fell back into the apartment, Thompson said.

The unidentified officer, 26, is a five-year veteran of the Phoenix Police Department and suffered some cuts and abrasions to his hands and legs, Thompson said.

He said no one else was injured.

Police said domestic violence calls can be some of the most dangerous calls they answer.

"When they arrive on the scene, they don't know the extent of that domestic violence prior to their arrival and they don't know the history necessarily when they get there. Sometimes in a domestic violence situation that violence transfers over to our officers," Thompson said.

The officers involved will be on administrative leave until a full investigation is complete, according to Thompson.

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